Eira Dryn
Eira Dryn is a Force-sensitive Arkanian Offshoot, adopted by a former Jedi Knight. Biography Early Life Eira was unwanted by her banker parents, who had neither the time nor money to drag a child across the galaxy for their job. With no other family willing to take her, she was left at an orphanage on Commenor. It was not as bad as it could have been: Commenor is at least a relatively wealthy world, and Eira was left in the hands of a relatively well-to-do orphanage and adoption agency. She went to school, grew up as normal as a child left in such a situation could, and made great friends with some of her fellow abandoned children. One in particular, Rethza’khar, though ususally called Reth, was a twi’leki girl rejected by her family and clan for her rare skin colour – she was Lethan, red-skinned, and while most clans considered that a rarity to be celebrated, hers did not. The two were practically sisters even before the Togruta woman came to inquire about them both. The woman, a former Jedi Knight by the name of Khaan She, had felt their presence in the Force during her travels, and allowed the Force to guide her to Commenor. Both Eira and Reth were Force sensitive, though neither knew it, and neither were particularly strong in the Force. Still, Khaan was able to adopt them both, which pleased both girls as they were able to stay together. As Force-sensitives, Khaan brought them to the Jedi temple to be tested and they were offered the chance to stay and become Jedi themselves, if they so wished. Both girls, too young and too overwhelmed with all the changes in their lives, declined. Khaan herself neither encouraged nor discouraged them, for all that she had taken her leave of the Order – she was a historian and a teacher who began to disagree with the war-like ways of the Jedi, and so the Order had not been overly concerned about her departure, as she posed little threat of falling to the dark side. The small, adopted family then went to Shili, Khaan’s home world. They grew up there and their mother taught them as well she could of language and history and some basics of the Force, so that they would not be behind if they ever did choose to become Jedi. They learned of Togruta culture, of Arkanian culture, of Twi’leki culture; they were an odd mix, but as rejects – Khaan, too, had been abandoned by her family – they fit well together. Hiding on Abregado-Rae In their early teens, when Reth and Eira were talking about maybe taking up their Jedi training, as loathe as they were to leave their mother behind, the temples at Coruscant and Ossus fell to the Sith. Fearing for their lives, Khaan moved them all to Abregado-rae, where they’d hide better amongst the mixed population, and taught them as best she could to hide themselves in the Force; she had no doubt that the Sith would come after them if they felt three Force-sensitives in close proximity. Though they tried to keep themselves hidden, it was no use. Within months a bounty hunter tracked them down, his target being Khaan as she was known to the Order and therefore to the Sith. She told Eira and Reth to hide and made a stand against the hunter, but she was no warrior; it was almost too easy to cut her down. Reth couldn’t keep herself quiet at her mother’s demise and tried to attack the bounty hunter; he merely took her as an additional prize: many people still prized twi’lek dancing girls, and a red-skinned one would fetch a handsome price. He took Khaan’s lightsabre as proof of his kill and left. Eira, panicked over the loss of her mother and sister, tried to follow, but was held back by her dying mother, trying to save at least one of the girls she’s come to know as her daughters. Khaan told her to run, to hide, and most importantly, to keep herself hidden in the Force, or she’d be hunted too. As a final gift, she gave Eira her akul-tooth necklace, and asked her to find her sister and remember her mother. Eira cried as her mother died, and could not bring herself to leave her mother’s body until she heard the sirens of a police cruiser approaching. Then, the necklace as her only possession, Eira fled. Abandoned on Abregado-Rae The first year on the streets of Abregado-rae’s largest city, Capital city, was very difficult for Eira. Most days she couldn’t find food, and slept on the streets. She had no skills that would help her here, but luckily she learned quickly: stealing and pickpocketing, as much as she didn’t want to do it, became her survival method. A credcoin here, a scrap of food there; she was careful not to be noticed. Some took pity on the underfed alien girl, but most glared or ignored her like the street rat she was. After seeing her hanging around the hangers day after day, hoping to get some money off travellers, a mechanic offered her a job as his assistant. Suspicious but needing it badly, Eira accepted. She learned quickly and the mechanic was kind, if gruff. Finally she had enough to eat regularly and afford somewhere to sleep at night. Unfortunately for her, the mechanic got a job on a cruiseliner, and left only a few months after they’d met. She at least had skills, but no mechanic’s certificate, and therefore couldn’t find another job in that area. Luckily she’d reached the age where she was allowed to work in drinking establishments. Seeing a pretty humanoid, the owner hired her as soon as she asked, and the pay was enough to make up for the almost non-existent uniform and the unwanted attention of patrons. Now that she had a steady job and some time to herself, Eira turned her thoughts to her missing sister, Reth. She didn’t dare imagine what had happened to her, or if she was even still alive – she couldn’t risk reaching out with the Force to find her, not now. But if she could get a ship, get off-world, rescue Reth… A plan began to form, and Eira looked for ways to make more money, enough to save to get off-world or even buy a ship. Joining the Fighting Ring Since mechanics wouldn’t hire her, and she couldn’t afford to go to school for her certification, Eira looked to her other skills for possibilities. Though not a warrior herself, her mother had gotten Reth and Eira lessons in unarmed combat so they could take care of themselves if hassled. Eira was a bit out of practice, but there was an underground fighting ring run by the same man who owned the bar where she worked. A few requests here, some careful bribing there, and she had her place in the ring. It wasn’t easy: most combatants were physically taller and broader than she was by at least half, and most weren’t humanoid. Luckily, with three categories – unarmed, single weapon, and creature matches – she was able to make up for it in single weapon matches, where she used a polearm to gain reach and height on her opponents. She learned the weak points of many species in her first months in the ring. While she lost a great deal at first, they kept her in the lineup for the same reason she’d been hired to the bar: there were almost no humanoids here, and even fewer females. Since it was mostly males betting and watching the matches, her presence drew a bit of a crowd. She didn’t like the work; well, that wasn’t entirely true. She enjoyed the fight, it was a liberating feeling to be without fear for those few minutes in the ring. What she didn’t enjoy were the leers and catcalls, but she put up a mask of indifference, reminding herself that surely her sister was going through worse than this. Eira still worked at the bar, though her employer alternated her shifts with her fight matches. Now she made enough money that if she was careful, if she kept winning most of her matches, she might be able to make it off-world within a couple years. But years seemed so far away, and at times she despaired. Meeting Ciryc She met a Mandalorian man in the ring, stripped down to just his armour and a knife, helmet removed. There was no hope to beat the man with that armour, and after a deft grab of her long ponytail, he had her by the throat, and she was forced to concede the match. While unhappy that she had lost simply because of his advantage with his armour, Eira was surprised to meet the same Mandalorian – who gave her only the name Ciryc – the following evening, in the bar where she worked. While she didn’t have time to stop and talk to him, she could almost feel his eyes on her through that helmet of his. The following day she cut her hair short, determined not to have someone use it against her again. The Mandalorian was waiting for her after her next match, one that she won against a Selonian, against all odds. He had little to say except to congratulate her on her victory. After that, she didn’t see him for days, when he appeared again, sliding into a booth across from her at a cantina – not the one she worked at. They talked, he listened with interest to her heavily edited tale of her missing sister, and he shared equally little on his past. Again, they went their separate ways, but now Eira kept an eye out for his blue beskar’gam – he’d taught her a few words of his language, tired of constantly hearing the terrible Basic words. Once, during their little chats, he suggested that, with her dedication to family, even an adopted one, and her skills as a warrior, she could almost be Mando’ade herself. Eira, not prone to much laughter, found this amusing and couldn’t help herself. A thin mixed-raced thing like her, carry that armour? The Mandalorian tried to explain that there was more to it than the armour, but she wouldn’t listen. Their run-ins tapered off after that, and Eira began to miss her friend – as odd as it was to consider him a friend; she had no other friends there. Leaving Abregado-Rae The fall of the Sith couldn’t have happened at a better time: Eira had saved up enough to buy a ship – and some spacers taught her to fly after she gave them some wide-eyed looks – which meant she could find her sister at last. It had been nearly a decade since she’d gone missing, but Eira felt in her heart that her sister was still alive. After months of following the Force, trying to track down her sister, she ended up in Ashla base, where she was briefly held for questioning by none other than her old friend Ciryc. He directed her to the Saridona Prime in the hopes that she might find help there. Personality and Traits Though at heart an optimist and a dreamer, Eira has learned to hide that side in her time on Abregado-rae. She may smile but rarely laughs, more out of distrust than a lack of amusement. Eira enjoys being around people, meeting people, talking to people, but she remains wary, especially of aid offered without compensation. She’s quite good at convincing people she is more innocent than she is and wheedling piloting lessons or some money out of strangers with her wide-eyed curiosity. Though she could never afford to keep one, Eira has always wanted pets, as they offer a comfort that sentient beings cannot: they cannot betray her. Eira is not a fearful person; with the death of her mother, she accepted that her time may come early as well, and does not fear death or injury in the same way most sentients do. She does not, however, consider herself particularly brave, though it appears so because she has few fears to overcome. Most prominently, Eira is confident in herself, in her abilities as a fighter and a mechanic, in her body, and that she will find her sister, no matter how many years of distance separate them. Strengths and Weaknesses Good with machines and repair work, persistent and determined at all tasks. Distrustful of those she doesn’t know and bad at doing more than one thing at once. She doesn’t know how to work as part of a team, having had little opportunity to do so. Physically stronger than she appears, and experienced in combat, though in a safer environment than the real world. Unfamiliar with most types of blasters. Racial Traits Though full-blooded Arkanians have a particular love of science and particularly genetics, Eira has neither of those interests, either because she did not grow up in Arkanian society or because of her mixed blood. Eira also prefers cool or cold weather compared to most humans, as Arkanians evolved on a cold world and are well-suited to it. Force Powers Trained at only a basic level by her adoptive mother and forced to hide her powers for nearly a decade, Eira is, unsurprisingly, not particularly adept at most areas of the Force. However, she is very good at hiding her presence in the Force, and does so unconsciously when in danger. Though having never trained with a lightsaber, having used a variety of polearm and staff weapon in her fighting years, she would find it easy to transfer those abilities to a lightsaber, particularly a saberstaff. Physical Appearance and Equipment Eira’s short white hair is no longer than her chin in any place, and suits her sharp features. While she tends to carry an innocent look around her, with her gently curved brows, open eyes, and plump lips, she can change to the fierce intensity of a warrior in a second. Her build is thin and almost willowy, but appearances deceive: she is quite strong and athletic, most muscle lean and wiry. Though tall for an Arkanian female at just under six feet, she makes no attempt to reduce her height; Eira stands tall and confident, though she generally wears flat or nearly-flat shoes in order to not tower over other, smaller people. Her hands are thin and long-fingered, but strong and confident. She has a few dark blue spiral tattoos to disguise particularly noticeable scars. Clothing Eira dresses simply, usually in neutral colours. Most often she wears a belted tunic or sleeveless top under a long jacket, fitted but comfortable pants, and calf-height boots. She has a preference for greens, blues, and purples if she must choose a colour to wear. For formal or special events, she would wear a flowing knee-length skirt and sleeveless top, both in dark blues, and an akul-tooth necklace is her only jewelry. Above all else she is practical in her clothing, choosing nothing too tight or too restricting to her movement. She is confident about her body, but still chooses to keep much of her skin covered under most circumstances. Starship *''Dreamer's Catch'' - JumpMaster 5000 Lightsaber Though Eira has not had an opportunity to build a lightsaber as of yet, this is the design she would choose. Behind the Scenes Eira is the character developed by Rebecca_Daniels to be used in Role Playing games hosted on the Jedi Council Forums.